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I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

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Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#351

Post by valleyer »

imglorp wrote: post #280
lifeisstillgood wrote: post #143

Earlier quoted context omitted.

QQ: how do you replace the ISP router - my cable provider clT out refused to give me the PPP / etc details or I have to go find an RPi with adsl io. I guess I can solve it but any pointers gratefully rec d

You can chain routers. disable the isp router's wifi, or just ignore it. Then place your router of choice on the LAN side of the ISP's router as the its Ethernet client. Make up a new subnet of your choice on your router's LAN side and use its wifi and DHCP.

Won't this result in "double NAT" and break a lot of NAT bypass techniques?

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#353

Post by benhurmarcel »

equon_ wrote: post #15

If you are comfortable with configuring DNS settings you can use NextDNS, it works with LG smart TVs. Pi-hole is an alternative but it is a bit more complicated to setup.

I used it with a Samsung TV and it worked well, but now the TV completely ignores the DNS setting that's configured in its network settings.

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#354

Post by danielheath »

olyjohn wrote: post #197
danielheath wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That breaks the built in chromecast, right (since the TV is the one fetching the stream), but I suppose you could plug in a regular chromecast dongle if that matters to you.

So... do all that work so that you can send all your shit to Google instead of Samsung?

Google may well be violating their privacy policy which specifically claims they don't do that, but I don't think it's likely; they run a pretty tight ship RE legal messaging, and _someone would have noticed_ since all you have to do is watch a video on a non-google property and watch the network traffic.

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#355

Post by cassianoleal »

kingrazor wrote: post #229
cassianoleal wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What am I missing? What's wrong with input switching being made at the OS level?

The speed and reliability of the OS. I should be able to change inputs even if the TV OS is unresponsive, which is not uncommon on some smart TVs. If the smart TVs you're using are fast enough and reliable enough that you aren't having issues then I don't think there would be any benefit to you.

Which was my point to begin with. My LG with webOS is very responsive for most things. Input switching has no discernible lag.

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#356

Post by cassianoleal »

humanistbot wrote: post #239
cassianoleal wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What am I missing? What's wrong with input switching being made at the OS level?

In many smart TVs, when you press the input button, it doesn't immediately pop up a mini OSD. It loads a program that can take as long as it does to load a streaming service's app. This program shows you ads, sometimes even inserts ads for streaming services in between the input sources you have to click over. This is before the time it actually takes for the input to change. With my TV, if I am on TV/Antenna, it tak…

> In many smart TVs

But not all. So, clearly it doesn't have to be below the OS level. I agree it needs to be quick, responsive and reliable, but that doesn't preclude it from being implemented in the OS.

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#357

Post by hdjjhhvvhga »

Nextgrid wrote: post #160
kitsunesoba wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The cost difference is marginal unless you're buying bargain bin TVs, though.

You underestimate how many people buy that ~3k TV on credit and for whom an extra ~150 bucks for an Apple TV is actually non-trivial money. In fact that's the reason these ads are there - a lot of people can't be convinced to use an external device to escape them. If everyone used Apple TVs/etc, there would be no built-in ads because it's just not worth the trouble.

I agree $150 might be a lot, but you can get these things even under $30:

https://www.amazon.com/Android-Streaming-Control-Assistant-1...

And Chromecast is arounf $50. That's really not a high price for being able to control your own TV.

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#358

Post by cassianoleal »

ahefner wrote: post #234
cassianoleal wrote: post #199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What am I missing? What's wrong with input switching being made at the OS level?

The fact that I have to wait for my TV to boot so that the 'input' button works in order to switch to the device I intended to use when I turned it on.

Mine takes 2-3s to come up, and at that point switching inputs takes pretty much only the time it takes for me to choose it. So, again. The problem is not that it has to be below the OS. The problem are crappy OSs and/or hardware.

Input switching on my TV doesn't even cross the Doherty threshold, or at least not in any way that I notice. And believe me, I get as irritated as anyone with laggy TV menus - which is one reason I refuse to buy Samsung at this point.

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#359

Post by Firmwarrior »

casperc wrote: post #347
cgrealy wrote: post #311

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm honestly a bit surprised whenever I hear someone talk about the speakers on a TV. Surely most people (especially for anyone who is dropping decent money on an OLED) are running external speakers?

Well, my TV is older, but I don’t use an external speaker. But because of laziness I suppose, but also because I don’t want a sub-woofer type sound. Also don’t want a second remote. I am sure those things can avoided, so I am open to advice on what to get.

A crappy $80 soundbar from Target will blow the built in speakers out of the water in every quality metric

I'd probably just go for some nice over-the-ear headphones though, unless you like tinkering with TV stuff

Re: I spent $3k on a Samsung Smart TV and all I got were ads and unwanted content

#360

Post by cassianoleal »

cgrealy wrote: post #311
cassianoleal wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Likewise. I used to mostly buy Samsung. My latest TV was an LG OLED. Not only I find webOS infinitely more usable than anything I've seen on Samsung TVs, but the image quality is excellent and even the built-in speakers are acceptable after I disabled the crappy AI-assisted stuff that makes it all sound like it's reverberating in a dumpster.

I'm honestly a bit surprised whenever I hear someone talk about the speakers on a TV. Surely most people (especially for anyone who is dropping decent money on an OLED) are running external speakers?

I have a soundbar since before I bought this TV. It does sound better than the built-in speakers but it started acting up recently (volume going up or down every minute or so for no reason). I tried resetting it, re-flashing it, etc but nothing worked. It doesn't happen always either and I haven't figured out a pattern.

I decided to stop using it and started looking for better soundbars. Eventually I will get a 5.1 or 7.1 system but for the moment the TV speakers are more than acceptable for everything I do - movies, TV, games -- I don't use the TV for music. For now though, the speakers are sufficient. They don't sound too bad. To be fair, there's not much reason they should since there's enough space where they're mounted for decent sized cans.

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